#its what she deserves!!!!!! go elin go!

[thedeadthree]

🌼🌈💧for Elin and Kenny beloveds! 💕

🥺✨✨!!!!! HIIII BB! i hope ur doing well and taking care of urself! THANK YOU FOR THE ASK I ADORE U SM! here’s some kenny and elin facts love! 🖤🖤

SEND AN OC AND AN EMOJI (x.x)

🌼- what’s your favorite thing about this oc?

i could write an essay SHES MY BABY AND I LOVE HER. the calmness she has when she herself is put under INTENSE STRESS is something i ADORE, like? THE COMPOSURE SHE HAS!!!!! IN THE MOST HECTIC OF MOMENTS! HER LOVE OF THE NUMBER ONE BEST GIRLS ANNIE AND CASS! her empathy and thoughtfulness with kenzie! her knowledge of art! HER GALAXY BRAINED SENSE OF FASHION. so many things!

🌈- what does this oc like or dislike about themselves?

elin loves her taste in fashion and art! she knows its immaculate she won’t debate! her ability to stay calm under pressure is a fav of hers, her achievements in acadmia, her determination to find who hurt nick, and that she’s a perfectionist! putting her all into everything she dedicates herself to! which can also be something she isn't too fond of too! she needs to remind herself she isn’t right ALL the time and that she isn’t flawless at EVERYTHING. that’s why she appreciates having rosy and sally as a figures in her life! a friend that tells calls you out is a HUGE one for her!

💧- what is this oc most passionate about?

art and fashion are for sure things she has STRONG opinions on and is veery passionate about as we know hehe! there’s also the importance of proper pet care as she demonstrated in first meeting the love of her life, finding who hurt saint nick, that she doesn’t want to see her mom again if she can help it, pursuing her dream of modeling, and cookies! to name a few!

🌼- what’s your favorite thing about this oc?

THE WAY i could do an essay with mla citations in a double spaced 12 point font in times new roman on my favorite things of kenny and elin hjdsahjfb BUT for sure would his the way he carries himself! i WISH i had his confidence/extrovertedness u know? he has this INFECTIOUS personality that’s so endearing like its no wonder he’s as successful as he is! he’s everyones best friend that stands up to bullies and i love LOVE it.

🌈- what does this oc like or dislike about themselves?

i think the thing he likes the most about himself is that he never lets his celebrity get to his head, he’d credit his brother dominic, and the friends/neighbors he grew up with in nyc for a lot of that! with how much people around him like his late dad and now his brother brother, sacrificed to get him there, he owes it to them and himself to give back and to not let the lights get to him? what he would dislike about himself is that he needs to lay off and take a break or he’ll overwork himself and break down? like since he started it’s been NONSTOP since? his “break” doing that desk job at his friends startup in the uk, was SUPPOSED to be that until he saw the body count ad! (which i will remind he misread THREE TIMES ahbfdhjg! dork!) TAKE A VACATION KENNY LIKE MAYBE SANTORINI SMHH.

💧- what is this oc most passionate about?

the HUGEST thing that kenny is the most passionate about is striving to give back to the people and city that got him to where he is in his life now! and standing up to bullies! he has a platform to give back to his loved ones and the people he grew up with and it’s HUGE for him to do that! and anyone with a bad attitude or uses their celebrity, standing to push people down is no friend of his :) he’s always been an eat the rich kind of person dsjabj go baby boy go!

#🌛: alya #anotherbeingsworld #the rest is under the cut bc I could talk about them for YEARS I love them so much AHH #hdsbak thank u for enabling me to talk about my beloveds! #AND ONCE AGAIN I ADORE U AND THANK U FOR THE ASK ALYA!!!!!!! #I hope you liked these! I need to make kenny’s and finish elin’s notions so this helpedLOT #leg.asks #leg.ocs #c. kendall lawton #c. elin wiseman #kenny is also near and VERY dear to my heart which is a fav thing about him for mee as well! #he was a verse hopping oc for a while until I think I threw him in as a like haha what would happen if he was in bc and then I got ATTACHED #we love it when ocs as a what if thing become a canon thing! it happened with lhysa being in dai AND her witcher canon too! and now kenny! #god kennys banner is *MUAH* so good!!! he’s like the ideal bf too I LOV U KENNY #elin ‘im flawless with the correct opinion on everything’ wiseman its okay to not be perfect! or be wrong! its okay bb! #kenny has heard the many dissertations on her art and fashion knowledge and opinions! its like interestingly enough very endearing! #he loves it the most about her for sure! the way she can convince someone so eloquently! #I and my mutuals want to raid ur closet elin you have IMMACULATE taste bb! #its what she deserves!!!!!! go elin go!

[enchanted-prose]

Daisy Chains

I can’t contribute anything to the fandom except for writing! Here’s my first contribution for something I’m going to call Fic Friday. I solemnly swear to drop a fic or drabble from 200-6,000 words every Friday! (drop comments because I live for attention?)

Title: Daisy Chains

Word Count: 2,000

Features: Mott, Jaron, Amarinda, Tobias, Roden, and Imogen, as well as a few ocs and an introduction for a larger project I’m working on.

No editing, we die like men.

The day was warm.

Birds chirped, and for the first time in a long time, the trees all bore their leaves. Everything was alive. Buzzing with a lazy energy.

The Roving River moved eerily slowly, slugging through the broken forest just outside of Drylliad castle. It would be years before the forest surrounding the castle healed from the wounds of war. But after two years, the environment was making great effort to return to normalcy.

But normalcy was still years away.

Repercussions from the Avenian War still rattled the government and population of Carthya. In Avenia, the people were struggling to survive. Bymar was facing severe social unrest.

At least Gelyn was still swindling people out of their fortunes, like they always did.

On the bank of the river lay a large, quilted blanket. A basket of food stood in the middle of a group of young people.

And there was laughter.

Smiles despite the haunted look each person tried to hide.

"Still can't believe you managed to drink an entire barrel full of mead," Tobias shook his head. "Roden, there's been an ongoing study about fermented beverages leading to an early death."

Roden Harlowe, the charming captain of Carthya's royal  guard, smirked, "I'm bound to die anyways, may as well die from something I like."

"That's not-"

"Careful Tobias, you might trick people into thinking we're friends."

"Shut up."

A wave of snickers rippled through Tobias, Roden, and the rest of King Jaron's inner circle.

Jaron himself had demanded that he and the inner circle take the afternoon off. They all deserved it. Each one had been working nonstop to ensure domestic peace, and others had been grappling with diplomatic responsibilities.

The rules for the afternoon were simple: Under no circumstances was anybody allowed to bring up anything that had to do with the kingdom.

Or other kingdoms.

Or anything sad at all.

"I feel like you should push Roden to his limits," snipped Amarinda, the princess and ambassador of Bymar. "If he can drain an entire barrel, why not see if he can do two?"

"Now that's a wager I'll get behind," Roden said. He settled on his back, clasping his hands behind his head.

"You'd be sick for days," Tobias argued.

"That won't stop me from doing anything."

"Idiot."

"Prat."

Jaron was laughing, "As much as I approve of pushing boundaries, maybe you should start at one and a half barrels. You still need to patrol the- ah, you still need to be wary on your feet. . . Or Tobias may be able to disarm you in a sparring match."

"Didn't think of that," Roden groaned. "My reputation would be ruined."

"Your reputation is already ruined," Amarinda teased.

"Damaged beyond compare, there's absolutely no chance you can repair it. You'll be churning butter your whole life," Jaron inched his way closer to Imogen, and settled an arm around her. "Maybe you could open a shop."

"I fully intend to vanish, and then train wannabe heroes just like the mentors from the old legends."

"Don't the mentors usually die in the legends?"

"Everyone dies in legends, that's why they're legends."

"I thought we were going to avoid depressing subjects," Imogen chirped. She tugged on the end of her braid.

A moment of silence settled in over everyone.

Avoiding the scars they'd all received would never be an easy task. They were still too fresh despite appearing to be healed.

Each one had different burdens.

Each one bore their own burden in different ways.

For Imogen, she found herself almost always afraid that somebody would materialize out of the dark and put an arrow through her shoulder again.

For Jaron, he couldn't ever seem to sit still, something he struggled with as a child before. If he was constantly moving, there was less of a chance of being caught.

"My cousin, Princess Eline, sent me a letter," Amarinda said. "She's going to be named heir to the throne soon."

"She's going to become queen in her own right?" Jaron's eyes went wide. "That's incredible!"

"She's taking the situation very seriously, especially since she's so young. However, there is much. . . Much to be done to prepare for the ceremony. I hope to attend."

"I hope we all can attend."

Silence once again.

They all knew that they were avoiding a subject very specific to Princess Eline's new title as Crown Princess.

Princess Eline  had the support of the Royalists, but no support from those calling themselves the Tairrogists.

The Tairrogists insisted that they needed a new monarch.

One that would focus on Bymar's affairs before attending to their allies.

And they were gaining an unsettling amount of support from the people of Bymar.

Amarinda wasn't the type to watch her country topple, even if she did have a duty to Carthya and her husband above all.

That was how she kept herself composed.

She busied herself with ways to make life better for everyone, and did her best to involve Tobias. Together, they worked through their concerns.

Their fears were slowly melting away.

Together, they recognized that there was only so much that they could do within their power.

Unlike Roden.

Unlike Captain Roden Harlowe, who silently insisted that he was strong enough to save everyone he could.

The results when he couldn't save everyone were devastating to watch.

So he turned to the company of alcohol. The local tavern had a stool reserved just for him. The local barmaids always did their best to serve him first for the chance to accompany him to his bed.

He kept himself detached and too involved all at once.

And he never slept alone.

"I've always wanted to know how to make a daisy chain," Roden blurted, saying the first thing that came to his mind.

"A daisy chain?" Imogen tilted her head. "I'm quite good at those, have anyone in mind you're going to give it to?"

"Not really, just need something to do while I'm out in the woods on a boring day."

"I think making daisy chains is a brilliant idea. You can use it as a weapon, maybe even a rope," Jaron snickered. "Can't tell you how many times my life has been saved by flowers."

"Ah, see, I can think of one time your life was definitely saved by flowers, your Highness," a smile split across Imogen's face like a ray of sunshine.

"None of you will ever understand how grateful I am for Imogen. If more people were like her, we'd get everything under control."

Nobody could deny that Imogen was certainly the most productive out of them all.

"I know I could use a few notes on remaining focused," Amarinda's gaze flickered to a special area. "Especially when Tobias and I are taking inventory in the physician's chambers."

Another wave of snickers rippled through the circle as Tobias's ears turned beat red, "I, ah, could say the same."

"Dear Saints, I hate being around you all," Roden groaned.

"Right! Daisy chains!" Imogen clapped her hands together, desperately trying to change the subject. "You start by getting-"

"-Daisies of course," Jaron said. He stood, and held out a hand to Imogen, "Care to look for them with me?"

"Don't mind if I do."

By the time they both returned from 'looking for daisies', a newcomer had joined Amarinda, Tobias, and Roden on the blanket. The sunlight glinting off of his shiny, bald head brought safety to both Jron and Imogen.

There was nobody they trusted more than Mott.

"Mott!" Jaron exclaimed, nearly dropping all of the daisies he'd collected. "Ae you sure it's safe for you to be out-"

"I'm not made of glass, Jaron," Mott sighed, but a ghost of a smile lingered on his face.

"I know, but, I do worry."

"I wish you didn't. What have you got there?'

Everyone was far too talented at changing the subject.

"We're going to teach Roden how to make a daisy chain," Imogen said. She sat down on the blanket, and began passing out bundles of daisies.

Mott tried his best to hide his surprise, "Is there somebody he's courting?"

"The day I court somebody, male or female, is the day that I get a sword through my middle," Roden snapped.

"Violent words from a lover," Jaron placed his hand over his heart. "How could you forsake our love, dear captain?"

"Because you're the type of person to steal the blanket in the middle of the night and I get cold."

"You do steal the blanket, Jaron," Imogen noted.

"I am not a blanket stealer!"

He was indeed a blanket stealer.

Quite inconvenient on a snowing night.

"To start with a daisy chain, you need a pair of flowers. One is going to wrap around the other," Imogen held up the daisies, expertly wrapping one stem around its twin. "You sort of repeat this pattern until it's as long as you like. I sometimes tie the ends together with string because they stay longer, but I don't think we have anything. . ."

"I have string!" Tobias said.

"Never leaves home without it," Amarinda grinned. "Always insists that he might need to stitch somebody up."

"Can't help it, I'm friends with Roden."

"Speak to me kindly," Roden frowned.

"Not on your life."

"Prat."

"Idiot."

The first batch of daisy chains from Jaron and Tobias fell apart. Eventually, their daisies became too worn out, and they fell apart. However, Roden seemed to be a natural at first. . . Until about halfway through the chain when he accidentally broke off a daisy, causing the entire thing to fall apart.

Amarinda's crown was finished quickly, and in no time, her crown was resting on Tobias's head while she worked on a second one.

They made sure to speak to each other while they weaved. It helped keep their minds from wandering to dismal places.

Crowns were made and placed on  heads.

Mott's bald head couldn't keep the crown in place until one was made to specifically fit his head, and his alone.

Tobias, at first, bore the most crowns. . .

But the circle made an unspoken pact, wrestled Jaron to the ground, and shoved as many daisy chains as they could onto and over his head.

It had been a long time since they'd all laughed that hard.

Later that evening, as Jaron sat alone in his office reading decrees and letters, he couldn't shake the feeling that the afternoon he'd shared with his friends would be the last truly happy thing to happen for a long time.

And it scared him.

It scared him that things weren't slowing down as he'd hoped. Though Carthya was well on their way to recovering from the Avenian war, Bymar was teetering on the edge of civil war.

As their ally, Carthya had an obligation to assist Bymar.

But what could they offer?

If Jaron sent troops, the Carthyan population would be decimated.

If he didn't. . . He'd be a traitor.

Oh how he wished that he could spend every afternoon simply making daisy chains with his inner circle..

#the ascendance series #ascendance trilogy #prince jaron #roden #roden harlowe #tobias branch #princess amarinda #imogen #mott #false prince #runaway king #shadow throne #captive kingdom #everyone has issues #fic friday #gosh i love roden so much #jaron is my literal fave #enjoy!

[femme-blem]

100 Follower Raffle Prize: Nephenee/Elincia

It’s finally here!! I want to thank the winner (who seems to have moved blogs - please contact me if you'd like me to tag you somewhere else!) for requesting this universe brain ship for their raffle prize. I had a lot of fun writing it and accidentally went all out so this ended up a LOT longer than 800 words lmao...if you're gonna create a new relationship tag on ao3 you might as well go hard!! I’d also like to thank @glitchsix for beta reading it and providing excellent critique 👌

hurt/comfort, injury, tw for violence

.......

Nephenee held the envelope high above her head as she weaved her way past her siblings to her ma's room, away from curious eyes and dangerously grabby hands. Only after locking the door did she take a good, long look at it. It looked far too nice to open - white, crisp, edged in gold leaf and sealed with wax stamped with the royal crest. Breaking the seal nearly felt like a sin, but her eagerness to hear from Elincia again outweighed her reverence.

Her heart skipped with some strange excitement as she took in every word of the queen's soft, elegantly curved handwriting. There was so much that needed to be done to return the kingdom to its former glory, and for that, the newly-crowned ruler knew she needed the full support of her people. So, Elincia, gathering her knights and closest companions, made plans to set off on a diplomatic journey to prove her worth as a leader by meeting her subjects and supporting the reconstruction efforts.

Nephenee firmly believed Elincia could. Despite their drastically different stations, the queen had always been remarkably kind to her during their time with Ike's band of mercenaries. She seemed to go out of her way to reach out to the shy villager, encouraging her to open up bit by bit, and with time they went from soldier and liege to something closer - Nephenee couldn't quite say what it was, herself. She held no notions of being able to remain as they were once the Mad King was defeated and tried to remain guarded, but leaving Elincia hurt all the same.

But now, holding the summons in her hands, Nephenee wondered if she'd been wrong on that assumption. Perhaps Elincia thought about Nephenee as much as Nephenee thought about her, even months after their farewells. Perhaps they could go back to those days in some way, not to the constant fighting for country and survival, but to the talks by the campfire late at night, the promises that they would return safe at the end of the day. Nephenee often wished she'd been bolder - even back then, she'd been so worried over screwing up or looking foolish that she always remained careful and professional in their interactions. Perhaps, this time...

Nephenee stopped and cursed herself. How could she think that way? She was talking about escorting the queen of all of Crimea, not reconnecting with an old friend at a tea shop. This was a serious task, one that Nephenee was honored to have been chosen for. She was a proven soldier being called back to duty. Nothing more.

.......

Nephenee accepted the call, and a month later was standing stiffly among the rest of the soldiers outside of the royal barracks. Now that she was here, surrounded by all these fancy capital guards, she wasn't sure she'd fit in much. No, she was certain she wouldn't fit in. She was surprised that she had made it in the first place; someone like her couldn't just waltz right up to Castle Crimea, could they? Surely someone would notice the hick in worn armor tromping over to the palace and see that she didn't belong; a guard would stop her in her tracks before she ever made it there, yell at her, send her back home-

But none of that happened. The guards had parted at the castle's gate before Nephenee could even pull the letter out and waved her inside. She was endlessly thankful for not having to explain herself, but knowing that she was expected by the castle staff was intimidating in its own way. What did they expect from her? And what about the rest of the soldiers going on the mission - would they just see her as a burden? Would they resent the no-name country girl who was simply handed a spot in the queen's entourage without having gone through any of the rigorous training the knights required?

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of beating wings. The rumble of conversation died immediately as every knight stood at attention. Nephenee followed their gazes only to have her breath catch at the sight of Elincia descending from the skies on her pegasus, orange-and-cream regalia shining in the morning light. A rush of wind tousled Nephenee's hair as hooves touched earth and wings fluttered to a resting position. Elincia looked...different, somehow. Just as stunning as Nephenee had remembered, but with a surer air, more confident in her position. Or at least better at acting like it.

Elincia scanned her crowd of vassals, perking up at a glimpse of deep green hair among them. Her eyes locked with Nephenee's, and she smiled, and Nephenee felt the air escape her lungs.

.......

They marched for weeks, traveling from town to town to address crowds and offer aid. Next to the Crimean Royal Knights, Nephenee felt like an awkward bumpkin again, but she'd be damned if she let it on. The queen had chosen her for this mission, and she wasn't about to prove her majesty wrong.

Not that she actually saw much of her. She only caught glimpses at most: Elincia's head peeking over the masses that gathered for her speeches, her back as she lead the march, the flutter of her coattails that were the only thing visible between the guards that circled her near-constantly. Nephenee told herself not to get her hopes up about having a conversation with her, let alone the chance to say howd—hello, but she couldn't help but be shocked over how different it was here than with the militia or the Greil Mercenaries.

Those were the thoughts that nagged at Nephenee as she poked at the logs of the campfire, content to sit alone during the night watch and mull over the situation.

"Nephenee."

She shot up at the sound of her name, despite the shivers coursing through her veins. "Elin—Queen Elincia," she corrected, bowing.

"Come, now. You don't have to use such formalities with me. We're closer than that, after all."

We are? Nephenee straightened. "O-of course, your m—Elincia."

A troubled look crossed the queen's face, and a pang of anxiety struck through Nephenee, afraid she'd already done something wrong. "I deeply apologize for not speaking to you before now. Even at camp, it's difficult to get away from my duties."

"You ain't got—don't have anything to apologize for. I understand."

She said that, but Nephenee didn't understand, not really. Why should the queen worry so much over offending her in the first place? But Elincia seemed relieved, and that was fine enough.

"Would you like to accompany me on a walk?" Elincia asked. "It's such a lovely night, and I'd love the chance to catch up."

"A-alone?" The question tumbled out before Nephenee could stop it. The queen couldn't just run off with some hayseed, could she?

"I don't believe I'd be able to slip away with so little protection without raising alarm. There will be a few guards watching over from a distance. I'm sorry if that makes you uncomfortable...would you mind terribly?"

The thoughtfulness and concern Elincia was showing her was nearly too much to handle. More than she deserved.

Nephenee swallowed. "Don't mind at all."

.......

Nephenee's boots pounded against the dirt. Her breathing came in quick, heavy gasps, only barely able to get out her message as she approached the camp.

"Bandits! The Queen's, huff, she's in danger!"

Most bandits would have the good sense to leave a company of the Queen and her highly-trained, thoroughly-armed retainers alone. But this particular band was too large and too opportunistic to pass up the chance.

They came all at once, an endless stream of barbarians charging from within the dense forest and behind rolling hills. They had the party beat in sheer numbers, and even the most highly trained guardsmen were having difficulty keeping up with their brute force.

If it kept like this, they would be overwhelmed in a matter of moments. Elincia looked towards her and yelled something about reinforcements and alerting the camp. Ever the obedient soldier, Nephenee had turned and run.

Every head whipped towards Nephenee's cry before the camp exploded in a flurry of motion. Some shot to their feet and charged past her, weapons already drawn. Others clanked as they heaved their armor on, preparing for the fight. They saddled their horses, grabbed supplies. It wasn't fast enough. They needed to leave now.

Nephenee's lungs ached; her legs felt weak. But she couldn't stop here, couldn't wait for the rest of her allies, couldn't allow everyone else to fight while she caught her breath. Not when others might lose the opportunity.

Not while Elincia was still out there.

Nephenee tightened her grip on her spear and charged towards the fight once again. Her body complained with every step forward, but she didn't falter. She had to get back, just a little more-

A scream. Cold ran through Nephenee's veins at the sound. There, in the space between two brigands, Nephenee saw as deeply stained cream-and-sunset dropped to the earth.

The sounds of battle were dampened in her ears. Any ache she may have felt was gone - she couldn't really feel anything. Not rage, or sorrow, or the way her hands gripped the lance so tightly the handle threatened to break. There was nothing but the single-minded drive to take Elincia as far from the fighting as possible.

She barely registered the men charging at her with blades raised high, but the spearhead found its mark all the same. There was a dull thud against her upper back followed by a warmth that should have been worrying, but Nephenee pressed on, unable to give the sensation a second thought.

The action around her had slowed by the time she reached Elincia's form; the rest of the army must have arrived and forced the fiends back. Nephenee didn't care to check. As gingerly as the coursing adrenaline allowed, she hoisted Elincia across her shoulders and trudged back in the direction of camp. Every bump and dip in the earth jostled her charge, causing Nephenee to wince. Or maybe the wincing had something to do with the tightness near her shoulder and the sting in her legs.

Her captain suddenly came into her vision. The paleness of his face and shock etched into his features finally stirred an emotion: guilt. Failure. She had allowed her—their—liege to come to harm, and whatever happened next was entirely her fault. He mouthed something and gestured to someone else, and she felt as Elincia’s weight was lifted off of her. Strangely, the leader of the Royal Knights didn't move, putting a hand to Nephenee's shoulder. Mouthing something else she couldn't make out.

"...phenee? Nephenee?"

Shades of blue and gold blurred together, and Nephenee collapsed.

.......

Consciousness came slowly—her thoughts, even slower. She shifted and immediately regretted the movement, which sent a fresh wave of pain through her upper back and a deep ache everywhere else. There was some movement next to her, followed by a light and a soft warmth that eased the sharpness of the feeling.

Nephenee let her head loll to the side, squinting at the figure and blinking until her eyes were able to focus on verdant green hair and warm copper eyes. She frowned hazily, not fully comprehending the sight.

Then it all came back.

Nephenee shot upright in the cot, a motion Elincia mirrored out of pure surprise and a justifiable amount of worry. Nephenee's body fiercely protested, but aside from a split-second wince, she didn't seem to register it.

"Yer majesty! Are you feelin' all right? I s-saw you fall, and, I, um..."

"Nephenee! Nephenee, I'm perfectly fine," she hastily replied in an attempt to calm her. A hand against her good shoulder gently nudged her back against the sheets. Nephenee allowed it, the fading adrenaline leaving her too tired and sore to do much but comply. "Please, rest. The fighting is long over. You needn't concern yourself over me."

Nephenee pressed her lips in a tight line, clearly torn between the desire to obey her liege and to serve her. "You're sure you weren't hurt none?"

"I...wouldn't say that," she said slowly, trying not to upset her any further. "I was injured, yes, but not nearly as severely as you. We're not sure how you managed to carry me that far with such a deep axe wound."

So that's what that was. "It was nothin', honest."

"But it was. Your efforts saved us, Nephenee. All of us. And we...I was so worried."

As Elincia's voice cracked, so did Nephenee's heart. She reached out and hesitantly put a hand on Elincia's arm, rubbing it with her thumb in a way she hoped was comforting. In truth, she was blown away by the concern Elincia was showing her, but she chalked that up to her soft-hearted nature. "Hey, I might be a little banged up, but I ain't too-"

Nephenee's brain caught up with the rest of her as she realized with horror how casually she was talking to the queen. Her hand froze.

"I-I mean...I may be, uh, slightly worse for wear, milady, but..."

Nephenee's face heat up as she fumbled with her words. Elincia looked at her with confusion before the realization of what Nephenee was trying to do dawned on her. She giggled through the last of her sniffles, wiping her face to try and retain some shred of composure.

"There's our Nephenee," she chuckled. "You know, I've always found that accent of yours terribly cute."

And like that, her thought process screeched to a halt once more. "You, uh. You do?"

Elincia nodded. "I'll admit that I missed hearing it during our time apart. I thought to invite you because of your bravery and resilience, but...in truth, I'd hoped we could spend more time together." She sighed. "I knew it could be dangerous, with how unstable the kingdom is. And you've fought so hard to save it already. For me to ask you to leave your village once more, for my own selfish desires...you must think me cruel."

"I don't understand. You're one o' the most tender-hearted people I've ever met. Anybody'd be glad to fight for ya."

"I don't want you to fight for me, Nephenee. I can't bear the thought of you coming to harm on my behalf. I tried to protect you during the battle, and still, I only caused you pain."

"Protect...me? What would you wanna do that for?"

"Because I care for you." Elincia's other hand came to rest upon Nephenee's. "You may consider it foolish, but truly, I...I love you, Nephenee."

Looking into those eyes, hearing those words, Nephenee nearly forgot to breathe. She wondered if she was still out cold and dreaming. But the feeling of Elincia's warmth and presence, that expression of anxiety mixed with hopefulness...those couldn't be made up.

“The feelin’s mutual. I love you, Elincia. Reckon I always have, but I never dreamed…”

Elincia gently pressed herself against Nephenee's good side, placing her arms low enough to ensure the bandages wouldn’t be disturbed. Nephenee brought one arm around her, embraced her tightly in return, and vowed to never leave her side again.

#nephenee #elincia #fanfiction #fire emblem #femslash february #this may not have been written for february specifically but if u think i wont ride that tag u are wrong! #fe9 #fe10 #imagines #tw violence #character x character #raffle #fic

[robertpattisons]

awstark, stark-tony, cptsteven

@awstark

 they follow me: Yes | No

Do I follow them: Yes | No | Now

What I think about their blog: ELIN??? YOU MEAN COMIC MJ??? you mean my drunk wine side wife?? you mean greatest artist ive ever seen??? you mean crisp gifsets even though she’s just starting??? idk who you’re talking about, (lmao). ANyWays, I ADORE elin with my entire hecking heart, it’s not funny. Elin is so kind, genuine, beautiful, amazing and just every good adjective I can find y’all - she deserves the world (oh, don’t forget thirsty too). but!! elin makes the best art, amazing gifsets and its so encouraging and such a positive person!! do yourself a favour and go follow her. 

@stark-tony

Do they follow me: Yes | No

Do I follow them: Yes | No | Now

What I think about their blog: becca!! is such a sweet person, omg. they have such amazing content and always are so incredibly kind and sweet to whoever they speak to!! plus!! her incorrect text posts always make me laugh because they’re genuinely so spot on and I can literally imagine said person saying what it says.

@cptsteven

Do they follow me: Yes | No

Do I follow them: Yes | No | Now

What I think about their blog: ANNE has such amazing content, no joke. gosh??? those manips/edits??? my heart??? how can someone has such talent in one body?? no joke??? Anne has such an amazing blog - its so well rounded. amazing original content, amazing rb’s, amazing theme, amazing url - can I say more??? also!! Anne is such a sweetheart, she’s so kind and down to earth and I completely adore her.

SEND ME A URL ANONYMOUSLY AND I’LL TELL YOU

#asks #<333

[starcunning]

Day Sixteen, Heroes and Villains

An AU in which your OTP has super powers. Are they a hero/sidekick duo? Are they archenemies? Are they both villains? From the 30-Day OTP Challenge.

So ... they’re basically already superpowered vigilantes in the main universe (or at least Shasi is superpowered). There’s another AU prompt that’s redundant (what if they had magic? i hate to tell you this, but magic is already in the setting), so you’re getting two glimpses into a timeline where the Warrior of Light becomes someone else.

Shasi sas Intemperatus. (She might be a villain, too.)

“Do you believe in Eorzea?”

It was the sort of question that demanded a ready answer, asked of X’shasi by the sort of man who would brook no less. As the lights of the Praetorium played over her face and his mask, the silence hung between them.

Was there a united Eorzea left to believe in? Would it long survive this operation? Ul’dah was in upheaval—and it was not merely the Sultana who had been lost to treachery in the Fragrant Chamber. The Syndicate had bullied its way into the war preparations and Teledji Adeledji’s hired killer had dispatched with the young monarch and her strong right arm.

And the Scions—what Scions were not lost in the attack on the Waking Sands or yet in the grip of the foe. That she had killed Adeledji and his assassins was cold comfort for the loss of her allies.

Raubahn’s successor, Eline Roaille, had been adamant that despite these setbacks—despite the aetherial readings on the Rhotano; despite a sickness in the Shroud the Hearers refused to intervene and curb—the Alliance must come together and act.

So she had acted, more alone than ever, and when the moment had come that Gaius van Baelsar asked her to speak, X’shasi Kilntreader found she had little to say.

“Yes,” she said, because it was what was expected of her. “If that were true, you would not have taken this long to say so,” the Black Wolf laughed. “I believe in it enough to fight for it,” X’shasi told him, the heel of her hand resting against the pommel of her blade. “Eorzea’s unity is forged of falsehoods, and its city-states built on deceit. To believe in Eorzea is to believe in nothing,” he said, his tone a lofty scolding. “To die for Eorzea is to die for nothing.” “But to kill—” “And to kill for it is to kill for nothing, too, girl,” the legatus said. “Pay attention.” He advanced, unhurried, his gunblade still at his back. “What happens when you kill me?” Gaius van Baelsar asked her. “I descend to the heart of this wretched place and I destroy your weapon. I dispatch Lahabrea,” X’shasi told him, setting her teeth. “And then what?” Gaius asked her. “And then you return the conquering hero, no doubt. Perhaps your homeland awaits your coming, every roadway lined with parades. But when they have tired of feasting at your victory table, what happens?” She looked at him with eyes as blue as ceruleum flames, and said nothing. “Ul’dah returns to its internal warring, no doubt,” Gaius said. “The vipers crawl over one another to the throne and whichever one wins floods the streets with poison. Perhaps the Admiral can strike a treaty with the sahagin before they succeed in summoning their eikon, but she will break her word in time. The Elder Seedseer watches her nation rot because her gods will not give her leave to act, and she is not strong enough to defy them. Are you?” “Am I what?” X’shasi asked, bewildered. “Are you strong enough to defy your masters? Nothing else will save Eorzea now,” he told her.

“Do you think yourself the answer to all of Eorzea’s ills?’ X’shasi demanded to know. “I was the answer to Ala Mhigo’s,” he said, laughing. “Better to peddle order and stability than madness and deceit.” “You would be hard-pressed to find a willing buyer in Eorzea after the destruction the Empire wrought at Carteneau,” X’shasi told him. Her knuckles were white around the grip of her blade. “I sought to spare Eorzea from the depredations of the White Raven,” van Baelsar told her. “She would have razed this place for spite’s sake. This realm deserved a better class of conqueror. But you are right; to bring Eorzea under my heel carries too dear a cost to bear.” “But you have not drawn on me,” X’shasi said, “so you yet carry some hope.” “The very same hope that all Eorzea rallies behind.” “Surely not,” X’shasi protested. “They would follow you. And you would lead them far better than they have managed.”

That had the ring of truth to it, she realized, watching that pallid mask. The lights of the Praetorium no longer swept over him—the lift had rumbled to a stop long before, she realized. The air around them was still, and thick with aether, dripping with it, like blood, like pitch; in the silence she could hear the whispers and the distant screams of the beleaguered dead. She could feel in this place a pulsing haze, and felt the lights grow dim; the aether rippled, and—

“Lahabrea,” she breathed. She felt the oppressive weight of the darkness, the quickening of long-dead magics. “The Ultima Weapon ...” “What of it?” Gaius van Baelsar asked her. When X’shasi answered, she knew not where the words came from; heard and felt and thought, and spoken, though foreign to her tongue. “It is not what the Dark Minion has told you,” she warned; “it is more. The destruction it wreaks makes this star tremble, from seventh hell to highest heaven.” “What?!” Gaius demanded. “I don’t know,” X’shasi muttered. “But we have to stop it.” “A truce, then,” the legatus said. “For now.”

They emerged together onto the platform that housed the Ultima Weapon. Its black carapace was aglow already in deepest crimson and brilliant azure, creating a sickly violet light that barely cut through the shadows gathering in the chamber. Lahabrea saw them coming and only laughed, a cruel sound from a friend’s throat. “Behold the Heart of Sabik,” he said, “the core of your Ultima Weapon.” His sneering tone laid bare his contempt for his erstwhile ally. “Behold a fraction of the one true god’s power!” “Lahabrea,” the Black Wolf growled back. “Your faith has blinded you.” “And have you come to grant me clarity?” “No,” X’shasi said, drawing her blade and beginning to channel her aether along its length. “The only thing I intend to grant you is death.” That made him laugh, raucous and mocking. “Kill me and you kill him,” Lahabrea told her.

His mockery was cut short by the crack of a rifle’s report at Shasi’s shoulder. She glanced aside to see that Gaius van Baelsar had drawn his weapon at last. Lahabrea stumbled forward a step and rose, undeterred, and the legatus charged him to engage with a stroke of his blade. The Ascian caught it with the silver-shod claws of his gauntlets, shadows rising from where he stood in a writhing, flailing mass.

Watching the pair tangle, X’shasi swung back her blade and brought forth her focus to spew a gout of flame, letting the gust of hot air dry her unshed tears. Blackness pooled on the platform, thick as tar, and Shasi had to step lively to keep it from grasping at her ankles. She could still hear the keening anguish at Ultima’s heart or perhaps at her own—or perhaps that was just the scream of cermite on steel as Lahabrea repulsed his attacker.

Skidding to a stop, Gaius lifted his gunblade, emptying the ceruleum reserves in a series of criss-cross strokes as he dashed toward the Ultima’s feet. They ignited in sequence, raking across the platform in a blaze of blue heat, leaving trails of flame behind. Shasi could have cursed him for abandoning her, but she watched him climbing the thing’s frame, calling for Nero tol Scaeva. The Paragon turned and lifted a hand, fell words tumbling from his lips, and Shasi sprinted forward to tackle him.

She heard the crack of bones as she took him to the ground, and when he rolled to his back, those dark eyes fixed upon her. Shasi had not the room to make use of her arts, so she simply hauled back and punched him, pummeling Lahabrea with blows as he cackled and writhed beneath her, struggling beneath her weight. He worked one hand free and raked her face with his claws. Her world went red with blood; it filled her nose and seeped between her lips until it was all she could taste. She spit it back at him in a glob of crimson, trying to get her hands around his neck.

Shasi pressed her thumbs against his throat, digging into those tattoos—Thancred’s tattoos—as though she could throttle him out, blinking blood from her eyes. His gurgling laughter still sounded in her ears, louder and louder as the room seemed to quiet. She looked away, unable to bear the sight any longer, and saw Ultima still and black, its limbs slack and inactive.

Whatever magic the Heart of Sabik held, then, it would not loose. At least there was that small mercy.

“Purge the tank,” Shasi called, rising to her feet, hauling Lahabrea up by the neck. “What?” Gaius asked. “The ceruleum tank! Purge the fuel!” she howled. A moment later, the fuel vented in a ripple of heat nearly invisible but for the blue at its edges. She let go of Lahabrea’s throat and kicked him in the chest instead. He stumbled backward, and X’shasi made herself watch as flesh blackened and hair crisped, flesh sloughing from bone until only darkness clung there.

And then, as it had done with the essence of the primals, Ultima’s heart drunk deep of the lingering essence of Lahabrea. A veil of rime spread over the black steel, evaporating in the last flames of ceruleum. There was a terrible stillness in the chamber then, Shasi’s last ally crumbling to ash.

Well, not her last. “So you do know the value of sacrifice,” Gaius van Baelsar said, emerging from the cockpit to regard her. She looked up at him, blood streaking her face. “Yes,” Shasi said. “I do.”

#30 day challenge #wol/thancred #x'shasi #shasicred #original content #starcunning writes #thancred waters #lahabrea #gaius van baelsar #shasi sas intemperatus #hashtag gaiuslives

[shemakesmusic-uk]

Pixey has released her new EP Free To Love in Colour as well as the video for stand out track 'The Mersey Line'. Speaking about the EP, she says: “I wanted a collection of tracks which gave a quick snapshot into me and my brain – where I’m from, where I want to be and what I’m thinking about. I hope people can take something meaningful from it or simply have a dance.” Of the new video for ‘The Mersey Line’, she adds: “‘The Mersey Line’ video was shot in one day at all my favourite haunts around the city. The song itself is about the walkway line along the River Mersey, so we retraced the steps I used to take as a kid and also when I was starting out as a musician. I would write lyrics to my songs along the same path. I wanted something that sums me up wholly as a person, and I’d say the video does just that.” [via Dork]

After turning a short TikTok video shot in her car into an empowering body acceptance anthem with over 70 million streams, Vancouver-based pop singer and songwriter JESSIA shares the music video for her breakthrough anthem 'I’m not Pretty' via Artist Driven Records/Republic Records. Watch the video directed by Benjamin Lussier. In the visual, JESSIA steps through the looking glass to confront her insecurities in a playful and tongue-in-cheek kind of way and falls down a rabbit hole into an imaginary yet cinematic eye-popping peach filled wonderland inspired by Roald Dahl’s ‘James and The Giant Peach’.  The video illuminates the rising artist’s fun and quirky persona, which is as infectious as the song itself. On shooting the video for 'I’m not Pretty' JESSIA says, “Filming the music video was such a surreal experience.  I kept looking around set and asking myself, ‘are all of these people here for me and my song? What? Am I really here right now? What a time. It was such a party on set! SUCH A BLAST!”

Feminism often focuses on the pressures placed on women in society, but men face their own set of pressures as well, and these are very much connected to the oppression women face. Would we have such high rates of domestic abuse if men weren’t taught to express themselves through violence? Would the sexual assault epidemic be what it is if straight men were not taught to view women as conquests? And if men could be free from these constraints, how would the world look different? Stockholm-based pop artist Elin Blom, known by her stage name FELIN, explores questions like these in her latest single 'Dear Boys,' an open letter to men who commit violence and mistreat women. “Dear guys/did your parents treat you right?/or did they teach you not to cry?” she sings against deceptively upbeat drums and bass. The song is intentionally poppy with an edge and roughness to it. Written at an all female writing camp in Stockholm, it utilizes an all-female writing and production team. With the single, Blom wanted to send her listeners the message that “it isn’t manly to be an asshole and not care about how you treat your children or care about how you treat women,” she says. “It isn’t manly to crack sexist jokes; that’s just rude behavior. It’s way more manly and brave to wear a dress no matter what your friends think, or to speak up against abuse or abusive and sexist language.” In the video she looks at the more positive side of the equation, celebrating people who don’t confirm to their gender roles with shots of actors exhibiting a variety of gender expressions and styles. In the beginning, she speaks out loud: “My heroes are those who dare to express who they are, fully, with no holding back. This is about those heroes; this is their moment. It was important for us to find a mix of men in different ages, with different sexualities and backgrounds, to show that it’s okay to wear [whatever] and be whoever you want no matter what you do for work, where you come from, or where you live,” she tells Audiofemme. [via Audiofemme]

For a record about the tedium of teenage life in the suburbs, 'Wasteland' is quite the grandiose introduction. The first single released ahead of Alex McArtor’s Welcome to the Wasteland EP introduces the project as both an opus of both catchy electropop and swelling orchestral compositions, all cowering behind the bold, slightly country-twanged voice of the young vocalist. The single arrives today alongside a darkly bizarre visual co-directed by (with Dwyer O’Brien and Ava McArtor) and co-starring (with O’Brien, Ava, and Campbell Barton) the vocalist, with McArtor name-dropping David Lynch as an influence. “‘Wasteland’ is the opening scene of this sonic film I had in my mind that turned into the Welcome to the Wasteland EP,” she shares. “It sets up the characters that are present throughout the rest of the EP and the environment in which they live, both spiritually and physically. ‘Wasteland’ represents a person, a place, or a feeling of recognizing a dead end. It’s like being stuck inside this geodesic dome and feeling controlled or watched by Big Brother and yet knowing that there is something else going on somewhere else.” [via FLOOD]

Back in January, Quilt frontwoman Anna Fox Rochinski announced her solo debut Cherry. The latest cut from Cherry is called 'Everybody’s Down.' Here’s what Rochinski had to say about it: “'Everybody’s Down' is a song that’s meant to be a little abstract but is generally about feeling run down and bewildered by rampant complicity during catastrophic times. EVERYBODY’S down, including you and me. And yes, also, “down” like bummed, if that speaks to you. And yes, also “down” as in, just casually down to do something, like, down to go grab food with your homies or whatever. It’s a triple entendre. We all feel all of these things every day. It’s a lot. Literally all I can do anymore to stay sane is have a sense of humor and laugh at stuff. I am so much less randomly sentimental than I used to be, but I think it’s because I have learned what really deserves my love and attention. There was a primordial version of this song that I brought in to (album producers) Carlos and Julian, but in the studio, we would visit it at the end of the night after all our serious work was done and throw stuff at the wall to see what would stick. It was like a way to release tension, and we didn’t take it very seriously. We made this minimal, weird, scuzzy instrumental with bass, guitar, synth and programmed drums, and I then took this raw creation home and worked out the structure and the melody and lyrics. In the end, I fell in love with this song, much to my surprise." Musically, 'Everybody’s Down' continues Rochinski’s exploration into a plastic disco-funk like its predecessors. It’s accompanied by a video directed by OTIUM. [via Stereogum]

Molly Lewis is a world-renowned whistler from Australia. In recent years she has been based in Los Angeles, where her Café Molly events have supposedly attracted the likes of Karen O and Mac DeMarco. Now the esteemed indie label Jagjaguwar announced that it has signed Lewis. Her first single for Jagjaguwar, 'Oceanic Feeling,' is out now. It’s a peculiar song with an even more peculiar video. 'Oceanic Feeling' is a wordless ballad that, between its high lonesome gallop and Lewis’ whistled melody, seems like it could be shoehorned into an old Spaghetti Western. But there are also elements of lounge jazz and exotica in the mix, particularly when Leon Michels’ saxophone enters halfway through. In the video, Lewis dresses like a medieval maiden(?) and music-adjacent Hollywood star and Café Molly regular John C. Reilly mimes the sax part while wearing an outfit that recalls the Burger King. I am not sure if any of this could be described as “good,” exactly, but it’s definitely unique! [via Stereogum]

Mannequin Pussy have announced a new EP, Perfect, their first new material since 2019’s excellent Patience. Last week, the Philadelphia-based band announced that founding guitarist Thanasi Paul had left the band, which means that Mannequin Pussy are forging ahead as a three-piece. Last year, they got together to record five new songs with producer Will Yip, who also produced Patience, that were influenced by our past year of collective isolation. 'Control' is the first song they’re sharing from the EP, and it starts off slow and methodic, as bandleader Marisa Dabice insists: “I’m in control/ That’s what I tell myself/ When all the walls around me close in.” Mannequin Pussy’s songs have often been about trying to enforce some control over uncontrollable emotions and exploding when that’s just not possible, and sure enough 'Control' bursts apart in its second half, a dizzying but still pretty escalation of guitars and noise. [via Stereogum]

Bloxx have dropped a brand new single, ‘Everything I’ve Ever Learned’. The track is the first new material from the band since last year’s debut album Lie Out Loud, and is produced by Rich Turvey (Blossoms, Oscar Lang). Speaking about ‘Everything I’ve Ever Learned’, Fee Booth explains: “The last two years for me have been very difficult, with health scares and anxiety hitting the roof. This song was really important in my journey to stop trying to understand everything, and to just accept the cards you’re dealt and make it work for you. It taught me to keep holding on, even when your grip is loose. The depth of what it means to me as a person is so crazy for just a four minute piece of music. It faces the trials of life, and everything that you wish you’d have been taught before having to face it all brutally, in the real world. It’s basically a self help song, it’s for everyone that needs to hear it. “You should learn to hold on, it’s not the end of the world” [via Dork]

Before the pandemic hit, beabadoobee was set to tour with Phoebe Bridgers and Dirty Hit labelmates The 1975. While that trek obviously never got on the road, the UK-based songwriter still managed to link up with 1975’s Matty Healy and George Daniel to collaborate on the follow-up to her excellent debut album, Fake It Flowers. beabadoobee is now previewing that effort, cleverly titled Our Extended Play EP, with the new single 'Last Day on Earth'. Fans have long known of the mutual appreciation between bea and Healy, and the pair have been teasing their collaboration for some time. The new single is rather clearly the result of beabadoobee’s sound meeting The 1975’s. That distinct ’90s indie melody that made Fake It Flowers one of 2020’s best albums carries through here, only now the vocal cadences recall some of Healy’s more measured moments. The result is a dreamier, more lighthearted beabadoobee, further closing the gap between the nostalgic styles that originally inspired her and modern indie music. Unsurprisingly, it remains as infectious as anything either artist involved in its creation has ever done. “With this EP, it’s kind of alluding to the fact that I kind of want to, you know, have a sound that sounds like beabadoobee rather than someone saying it reminds them of something else,” beabadoobee tells Consequence. “I don’t think it’s a whole new era just yet… I still have blonde hair, the same blonde I had for Fake It Flowers, and every EP I have is almost like who I am right now — right this second. That’s everything I write about in this EP. I haven’t really changed my look and I always base eras on my look, like, ‘Oh, what color am I going to dye my hair this time?’ But I’m pretty comfortable right now. I’m pretty chill.” 'Last Day on Earth' comes with a video directed by Arnaud Bresson of Division Paris. The clip finds beabadobee exploring all the things she would have done if she’d known normalcy would be stripped from us a week in advance. [via Consequence of Sound]

Inspired by Nestlé TV adverts, K-Pop music videos and the Oscar-nominated 70s film Five Easy Pieces, Irish pop icon CMAT has shared a new video to accompany her fourth single ‘I Don’t Really Care For You’. Adorned in a fabulous snake-skin blazer and skirt combo, the pop starlet performs an impressive and joyful dance routine opposite a mute bearded beauty who’s Instagram followers are set to double in the next few hours. “The director Eilís approached me some time ago to make a music video, and I really wanted it to be for ‘I Don’t Really Care For You’ because I knew she would be able to capture the high energy mood of the song, and also we are into the same old, niche and ugly design stuff,” CMAT explains. “The dream sequence was inspired by a Nestle ad from the 1980s. The choreographer, Nick, made my dreams come true. I was like, ‘I want to dance like Blackpink, but I have absolutely no technical ability whatsoever.’ I think that much is evident in the video but we pulled it off!” Full of CMAT’s lush, yearning vocals, relatable lyrics and Americana-tinged guitars, ‘I Don’t Really Care For You’ is a song that sees her swallow her pride and admit to sometimes being “the bigger dickhead in a relationship.” The witty set of accompanying visuals show CMAT at her finest, exuding a charisma that lights up the screen as she leans into “the Marian Keyes of it all.” [via Get In Her Ears]

Nordic pop sensation Anna Of The North has shared her new single 'Here's To Another'. The songwriter swoops back into action, crafting a follow up to her Internationally successful 2019 album Dream Girl. A new album will follow later this year, with 'Here's To Another' finding its way online. An all-out Scandi pop banger from one of the best in the game, the single is a finely sculpted slice of electronic melody. 'Here's To Another' twists and contorts, before its final head-long release results in a glorious chorus. [via Clash]

American songwriter Natalie Bergman has shared new song 'Home At Last'. The new single dips into her country and Americana roots, while adding some soothing gospel elements. There's some sumptuous harmonies sitting around her voice, a soft pillow for Natalie Bergman to relax into. The beautiful video is online now, shot in an abandoned chapel, one that brings out new meaning to her lyrics: “Answer my prayer, when a great man falls and the skies collapse, where’s the joy in this world, is he home at last?” Natalie explains... “I have always written songs about ‘home.’ A place that is not on this earth. It brings me a great deal of comfort knowing that place is waiting for me - especially when life can be so alienating and lonely... In the video for ‘Home At Last’ I found a small chapel in Los Angeles and the moment I saw the stained-glass... I felt like it belonged to me. One of the best things about making music is sharing it with the people you love. Playing it with your friends and family. I invited my favorite artists to be a part of this performance and I asked them to think about what heaven might look like to them.” [via Clash]

UK band Crawlers may only have three other singles but they’re definitely not your standard alternative indie underdog. The group of four secured air time on BBC radio and were featured in two Spotify editorial pages. Their new single 'Statues' came out on the nineteenth. It only proves this bands remarkable character. The vocals corrosively discharge acerbic phrases, “You make me so calm, let the statues fall”. Holly Minto invites you to participate in tormented ambiance. The guitar slays the entire track, no thanks to Amy Woodall, jolting the listener out of an ignorant slumber. The guitar makes for a perfect incumbent of the perforating bass put down by Liv Kettle. Now the drumline is a total antithesis, very classic rock/n/roll. Harry Breen takes on the persona of a grounding buddha by producing a converse rhythm. It’s like he is having this eloquent conversation with the rest of the instrumentals. [via Sounds Good]

Nashville-based songwriter Madi Diaz releases her new single/video, 'New Person, Old Place.' Madi recently marked a full restart of her career with the evocative 'Man In Me,' a first offering showing how she’s capable of distilling profound feelings with ease. While 'Man In Me' took Madi through her first steps of a really hard time, 'New Person, Old Place' presents her further down the road, after processing the pain and loss of a breakup. She uses specific diction to describe feelings that are typically hard to verbalize: “I used to stay up on the off chance that you might call me back /  I used to go shopping for pain go through pictures it’s all I had / I’d sift through our memories and live there even when I wasn’t sad /  I used to, I used to, but now I don’t that.” Madi elaborates: “This was a moment I realized I wanted to start to learn how to do it not better, not worse, but just different… and then something shifted. Something in my heart finally knocked loose and I was breathing deeper. It’s hard as hell, breaking patterns and unlearning all the old shit, trying to shut all the doors that I used to open to let all the same hurt happen over and over. I’m at least learning to find new doors. ‘New Person Old Place’ is a mantra. A line that I’m casting into the future so that I have something to guide me forward. It’s something of a reminder that if my heart is the house that I carry with me wherever I go, I can take it somewhere new, or I can do the same old thing I always do but backwards or with a cartwheel, and I can repaint and I can rearrange the furniture. I can clean the mirrors so I see myself true and clear.” The 'New Person, Old Place' video was directed by $ECK and shot in Madi’s pickup truck throughout Nashville. The video follows Madi on a journey to the salvage yard, driving different versions of herself there to face her history.

Following the release of her viral rock cover of Miley Cyrus's 'Midnight Sky', which garnered over 341.5K views, Izzy T is unveiling her explosive new single 'Nuclear.' Featuring UK rap artist Ben Hunter, the almighty alt-rock-pop fireball of energy combines electric, raucous sass in a mix of fearsome beats and muffled, gritty guitar. Screaming enough is enough, the mantra of this song sits on a tidal wave of frustration, narrating the darkside of a relationship and how people can become the furthest thing from who they really are. Izzy shares, “This song has really paved the way for my new sound as an artist. I love big crunchy guitars and stompy beats, and the freedom to go from low and creepy, to high as the clouds with my voice!” With an underlying theme of empowerment in dark times, Izzy provides a voice that we can cling on to, emphasizing that we can do whatever we put our minds to.

#videos of the week #pixey #jessia #felin #alex mcartor #anna fox rochinski #molly lewis #mannequin pussy #bloxx #beabadoobee #cmat #anna of the north #natlie bergman #crawlers #madi diaz #izzy t

[thesilentconclave-blog]

The Sanguine Repose [pt 1]

The Pict screen flickered to life, revealing the heavily scarred Visage of a space marine with flame red hair, blue eyes and dark skin, then the words crackled from the speaker.

“This Captain Moiran, of the Avengers Sanguine battle barge Sanguine Repose. This will be my last log, for the beasts shall return soon, and they are numerous beyond belief. We have set the charges, and some of our Number have been taken by the Fury. I envy them, for at least they will not see my failure, and shall stand at our Father’s side, in glory.

Chaplain Matrusha has sealed the vaults, and raised the ancient wards. The Chapter Relics are safe, and the Ancients have sworn to protect them.

We have put the last of the chapter serfs to the sword, that they may not suffer the fate we have seen to many of our loyal servants suffer.

May the Emperor curse the warp storm that flung us into this nightmare zone.  The beasts tore through the Navigator’s Sanctum, and the Astropath’s cloisters. We commend our souls to Sanguinus and the God Emperor.

I have failed them. I have failed my brothers, I have failed my Chapter, I have failed the Emperor, and I have failed our Father. May he and the Emperor forgive me, though I fear I do not deserve it.

Brothers if you have found our final resting place, then know that all those who fought beside me did so with great honour, and shed the blood of the foe a thousand times their number. Every batte-brother who fell did so having made our foes pay with dozens of their own, every millimetre of this Sacred ship bathed in the blood of xenos filth, washed clean by the shed blood of our martyrs. Let all the shame of this nightmare fall upon my head for leading us into the Warp Stor that lead us to ruin.”

The space marine paused as the thud of an explosion briefly turned the audio to a fizzling pop, he then returned his gaze to the pict captor.

“Now, I go. For the Emperor, for Sanguinius. BLOOD AND VENGEANCE!”

The image froze and Elin stared at the screen, drumming her fingers upon her desk, then looked up from it, to the man in armoured white and blue robes before her, his force sword hanging from his hip, even here, in her inner sanctum.

“A strange thing for a rogue trader to have in his possession, given the rest of his collection. Tulin, is he capable of answering more questions?”

“No my lady, Doctor Nagoya informs me that the strain of the last interrogation was too much for him, he went into cardiac arrest shortly after you finished with him, and could not be resuscitated.”

“A pity, his input would have been useful. Have the body incinerated. Pass his details on to Lady Aleanbh, and suggest she take a closer look at them, I suspect that family are hiding something, and given what we found here, it does not bode well.”

“At once my Lady, is there anything else?”

“Yes, have the Traitor’s navigator and XO prepared for interrogation. I’ll have questions for them shortly.”

“Of course my Lady, Ave Imperator.”

Tulin bowed, and turned, striding from her study, sealing the door behind hi, as the Scions outside her quarters saluted him. 

The door slid shut with a hiss, and she tapped a series of runes, setting it to do not disturb. She slid her chair back and rose, wondering round it, and over to the window, at the enormous vessel that dwarfed her own, its’ black, dark blue and scarlet hull pock marked by debris impacts, and the deep rents and gouges from some ancient battle.

Somehow, even after nearly two whole millennia, the vast white winged blue tear drop of the Chapter’s insignia glittered as bright as though it had been finished that very day.

She cocked her head slightly. “I wonder, if you could tell stories, what tales would you speak? What ancient secrets could you reveal? Could you tell me of my prize?” She returned to her desk, settling into it. Her Astropaths had already contacted the Avengers Sanguine, and the communique she had received in return had been quite something. The Chapter Master himself had responded, and all the chapter were coming to reclaim the pride of their fleet, and the very heart of the Chapter. 

#The Sanguine Repose #Origins of An Inquisitor #Lady Elin Falk #Conclave Member: Elin Falk #Not an RP post #Writings

[heyyy-hey-babyyy]

Creep 2, dir. by Patrick Brice (Blumhouse Productions, 2017)

Academic film review below-- May contain spoilers 

Access the trailer here 

Since the prequels’ beginnings in 2014, audiences have long awaited the return of Mark Duplass as Joseph (or Aaron as he is referred to in this film), the unstable protagonist of the Creep franchise. Filmed in the recognizable “found-footage” style, made famous by films such as The Blair Witch Project (1992), Creep 2provides enough tension to rival the prequel. The slasher style of Creep 2is not new, as horror audiences recognize the long stare and sinister smile Duplass perfects. What sets the sequel apart, however, is its important commentary on mental health, with its protagonist recognizing the severity of his situation, and converting a seemingly stable individual to his dangerous lifestyle.

Creep 2 follows Sara (Desiree Akhavan), a video artist with a focus on unusual Craigslist requests, and those who are behind the screen making the request. The movie begins with her answering an online advertisement from Aaron (Mark Duplass) who requests for her to come out to his remote house to video him for the day. Fans of the original film recognize this request, and go along for the ride without question.

Within the first seconds of the film audiences are witness to a similar plot from the prequel: a character appears on the screen, opening a cardboard box which contains the camera (as audiences are looking up as the character is looking down into the box), and a disk which the words “Watch Me” written on it. As the character watches he witnesses something distressing that the audience is not privy too, as all they hear is whistling. There’s a knock at the door and the character leaves to let in Duplass’ character Aaron. As the two talk, Dave, as the audience now knows him as, tells Aaron about the random packages he has received and the video of his house. Dave then leaves the room, which allows Aaron to smirk at the camera and blow it an air kiss, the audiences’ first instance of the plot line of the film. The tension continues to mount as Dave returns and Aaron admits to filming his friend saying, “You are a beautiful person and you deserve that… but I don’t know if I can do this anymore”, before graphically killing Dave. Aaron is silent for awhile before whispering, “what’s happening to me?”. After the credit roll we are introduced to Sara, star, writer, and director of the show Encountersthat she describes as “the show where I look behind the strange world of personal ads to try to uncover the humanity within”. She is frustrated with the amount of views she received on her latest video and the movie continues with her searching the Internet for the perfect personal ad. We happen upon Sara during her closing episode of Encounters, where she hopes to bring out the best in some “weridos”, when she finds an ad “looking for a videographer” in which the advertiser is looking for someone to “…go deep. Together”. She follows up with the ad poster, and agrees to meet and drives to his remote location.  

Upon meeting Sara, after a very real interaction where the two hug and enjoy a smoothie, Aaron casually confesses to her that he is in fact a serial killer with a strong killing streak—however, he further confesses to losing the taste for it recently. If Sarah films him as he truly is, he promises to not harm her, but make her witness to his lifestyle. Sara is thrilled, as she has truly found her unstable requester that will give her show the online following that she desires. While interviewing Aaron, he states that he considers himself to be a “murderer” as he does not like the nomenclatural of “serial killer”, but the numbers classify him as such. Aaron’s insouciant approach to being a murderer is reminiscent of the discussion surrounding mental health, in that he identifies much like someone would identify as depressed or having anxiety. In this way, audiences are alienated from what is happening before them. Bertolt Brecht theorized the idea of Verfremdungseffekt, which is“…the technique of defamiliarizing a word, an idea, a gesture so as to enable the spectator to see or hear it afresh”. [1]This distancing effect forces the audience to become a critical viewer of whatever text is being preformed before them. Verfremdungseffektcan also be seen as having a purpose of which, “…to denaturalize and defamiliarize what ideology makes seem normal, acceptable, inescapable” (79). Audiences are made to be un-familiar by what is happening on the screen, text, and stage before them in order to question the ideology of what makes this seem obscure or confusing, as Brecht theorizes. In this way Creep 2 makes a powerful decision, allowing audiences to recognize the moves Aaron is making, but also further questioning why it isn’t normal for him to be talking about murder so carefree.

As the film continues, Sara begins to see Aaron as unstable when his plans for the documentary begin to fall apart, but also develops a connection to him, perhaps in response to Aaron freely opening up to her. This connection comes to a head, in a pivotal scene, where Sara finds Aaron in a hot tub, after he has shut himself downstairs out of frustration. She begins to push him to speak to her, and Aaron tells an unsettling story about his first murder. They have an intimate moment after, where Sara massages Aaron, and after, he tells the audience (through the camera) that he is having “feelings” for her that he never thought he would feel again, while the camera focuses on a large kitchen knife. Aaron then follows Sara to the shower where she is hiding in the corner to successfully scare him. They commence an interesting game of hide and seek and Aaron confesses to Sara that he would like to kill her, but they are having too much fun together, so he feels as if he can share his work with her.

Eventually, Aaron admits to Sara that he recognizes what she is doing; buttering him up to get what she wants (as he has seen her show). Sara admits she does not think he is a serial killer and Aaron tells her that the movie he wants to make is actually a “murder film”, where Sara murders him. Sara is hesitant, but does not say no, either from a want to make a unique film, or her sanity is slipping in the presence of Aaron. The film continues with a few odd scenes where Aaron, “plots” his murder, leading to the finale of Aaron confessing he likes Sara and admits to being “not a murderer”, though the audience knows that to not be true.  The movie concludes with Aaron and Sara heading into the woods, where he presents Sara with a locket, as his symbol of love for her. He spins Sara around to face a grave; he presents a knife, and stabs himself, telling Sara they could die like Romeo and Juliet. Instead, Sara turns and runs leaving Aaron. The two take off running and Aaron eventually catches Sara, stabs her and drags her in the grave—The movie concludes with Sara hitting Aaron over the head with a shovel. There is a cut scene that then shows Sara walking through a crowd with the locket still attached to her neck, and someone with a camera following her.

A major strength of Creep 2 is the focus on mental illness. Throughout the film you feel for Aaron, even as you see the horrors of his actions from the previous film. Sara begins to develop feelings for Aaron and audiences witness intimate scenes between the two that waver between honest and raw, and uncomfortable. Another underlying strength is the real-ness audiences’ witness. Opposite of the original, we as the audience see the real “Aaron”. There is no tension surrounding what he is or is not; we know him to be a serial killer. But perhaps more important, his realness allows Sara to engage in some sort of relationship with him which changes her, in an intense commentary on the human experience. Are we able to be manipulated by someone being too real?

As Alex Mclevy aptly states in a review for AVClub[2],“Given a performer who can match him in talent, Duplass has transformed his twisted killer into a flawed and charismatic soul, radiating a quiet desperation that’s far more magnetic this time around. He’s made a monster more intriguing…Not many film series can make that claim” (Mclevy). Creep 2 has done what rare other films have accomplished; made the audience relate to a serial killer. Upon completion of the film, audiences are made more aware of the fragile line between stable and unstable; mentally capable and mentally ill. How then can the horror genre further open our eyes to the truth within society? Creep 2 begins the important conversation that horror critics alike seek the answers to. As Maria H. Loh in her article, “Introduction: Early Modern Horror”, states, “…representations of horror steel us for the experience of horror in real life”[3]. Through Creep 2 we are able to recognize the unstable nature of mental health. And that recognition could be the key to discussing mental health in its entirety. Creep 2 appeals to many audiences in giving them an inside look at the potential for the instability of seemingly “normal” individuals, and provides Creep fans with familiar signposts, including the return of Peach Fuzz the terrifying wolf mask. I applaud the writer and director of Creep 2 for giving audiences a realistic look at mental health, through the eyes of Aaron, the serial killer the audience has empathy for.

[1]Diamond, Elin. “Brechtian Theory/Feminist Theory: Towards a Gestic Feminist Criticism”. Performance Analysis An Introductory Coursebook, edited by Colin Counsell and Laurie Wolf, Routeledge, 2001, 77-85.

[2]Mclevy, Alex. “Creep 2 is Smarter, Funnier, and More Engaging Than the Original”, AV Club, <https://www.avclub.com/creep-2-is-smarter-funnier-and-more-engaging-than-the-1819815646> [accessed 27 March 2018].

[3]Loh, Maria H. “Introduction: Early Modern Horror”, Oxford Art Journal, 2011, vol. 34, no. 3, pp. 321-333.

#horror #creep 2 #horror review #horror movies #movie review #indie movies #filmisnotdead #film reviews #academic horror #horror scholars #Netflix #sequel #just as good as the original #grad school

[thedeadthree]

🎄🎁🎬 for miss Elin and ⛄️🎇🔔 for miss Edelgard! feel free to leave off any if it's too many! 😊

hi vale!!!!! i hope ur doing well lovely! eeeeek your so sweet thank you so much for asking about my babies! and a safe and happy holidays to you hun! ✨🎄🤍 (this got LONG so eddies will be under the cut!)

❄️OC FESTIVE ASKS❄️

ELIN WISEMAN, mind blind

🎄- how is this character as a decorator? do they enjoy putting up decorations? do they like everything to look just perfect, or do they have a more eclectic/chaotic aesthetic with their decorations? when do they decorate?

she acts like she’s not really thrilled about the holidays most of the time, it’s a time where most people cozy up with their families, and given the state of her family at the moment it’s not a season she feels the most thrilled about. But Nick gets excited so Elin puts an effort for his sake! she knows it’s bc they spend more time together bc he’s at home! she’s not much of a decorator but all that nonchalance goes out the WINDOW when she’s asked to redecorate. you know how she’s VERY opinionated when it comes to fine art or avocado toast right? she’s that way with decorations as well! will turn into a pro art critic at a moments notice ✨😌! she kind of stands and DIRECTS the decorating? she gets a bit spooked she’s going to fall off a ladder or drop an ornament so she prefers to just direct nick to where she thinks thinks will look best. definitely likes to take advantage of all the green and pop in some silver decorations here and there! before the incident her dad and brother liked to decorate the moment December first came but now it’s like maybe a week or so before when he gets time off is when she decorates!

🎁- what kinds of gifts does this character like to receive? what is the best gift that they’ve ever been given? what are they hoping to get this year?

material things are always fun! she enjoys clothes, shoes, bags, matcha making kits, avocados so she can recite the “ITS AN AVOCADO THANKS” vine, stuff like toys and outfits for annie and cass, tickets to art museums that she can go on dates with kent with *cough cough*, anything that shows she means something to you and that you KNOW was meant for her because only people that GET her would? and of course quality time with those she loves the most either going out or staying in is fine! just like making an effort is what means the most for her! kent zarneki coming in to her life looking like a byronic piece was the best gift she ever got the best gift she ever got was probably her brother honestly, the holidays are always ROUGH for her but he makes an effort FOR her, and has been in her corner since everything that happened and it’s SAPPY but it really was the best gift for her :’). a wedding ring from kenzie she’s hoping to get this year her brother healthy again and to take a nice trip to bali trip to new york to see the met and to celebrate new years with her friends and loved ones, she deserves a nice vacation you know?

🎬- what is/would be this characters favorite christmas movie?

i would say it would be a christmas carol the 1938 version! it’s a classic and she always appreciates how much art goes into making old hollywood movies as it paved the way for modern movies ✨☺️

EDELGARD VANDERWEYDEN, the fernweh saga

⛄️- when does this character get excited for the holidays? do they even get excited?

unfortunately the holidays season is the one time a year she dreads the most. she books to the brim performances, rehearsals, etc during this season to keep her busy and spend the least time in it. like elin this is a time where families get together and spend time with family and loved ones and, well, she doesn’t have that. she does but her family in europe is VERY into the holidays but more for appearances, everything is formal and there’s parties and traditions and planned outings and dinners and it’s all very MUCH and stuffy and it didn’t help much getting her to appreciate the season. when her and reese get together she’ll cut back on her workload to spend time with him bc ooo cute she admits she likes him FINALLY but she’d prefer to have celebrations be just them and being in each other’s company! (but she still sees her family in europe and of course he’s got parties so bc she loves him and her family she’ll endure them and actually enjoys it now that she has him ✨🥺)

🎇- what does this character do to celebrate the new year? do they make resolutions?

she usually flies to visit her family in cologne in germany or amsterdam in the netherlands and spend the new year with them! brings beckett along and soon reese hehe! 🤍 she actually likes new years more because it’s her optimistic side hoping for better things to come :) and and she doesn’t! why wait for january when you can just… do the things you set out to achieve is sort of how she feels? after her parents passing she makes no haste for things anymore so that may be why ✨🥺

🔔- what is their favorite christmas song? which one can they not stand?

it would definitely be piano versions of christmas songs that are her favorite! her favorite to play is what child is this? it’s beautiful and melancholic and sounds wonderful on the piano. her lack of love for the season shows here the most because most songs are maybe not what she can’t STAND but wish that she didn’t hear until the end of the year if she can help it ✨🤧

#hiiii! i hope your doing well! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE ASK i appreciate u so much! ✨🥺 #🌫: vale #galacticvales #leg.asks #leg.ocs #leg.txt #c. elin wiseman #c. edelgard vanderweyden #if. mind blind #if. the fernweh saga #this ask game came at the perfect time since im sick in bed so thank you! #this sinus infection is taking me OUT i tell y’all ✨🥺 #kenzie prepare yourself for art critic elin ✨🤧 #KIDDING actually it’s kind of hilarious that she’s the total opposite when decorating with kent #you know the oh dear oh gorgeous meme? SHES that with kent ✨🥴 #and nick is over there like EXCUSE ME ✨🥺 and she’s like THESE DECORATIONS ARENT GONNA PLACE THEMSELVES NICK ✨😠 #oh sweetie your doing great kenzie! ✨☺️ #keep nick in your thoughts ✨🤧 BUT SHE DOES LOVE HIM SO MUCH OKAY and she really would do the most for her brother bc he does for her ✨🥺 #and @ alya she is the way with kent with maia too ✨😌 #is the oh dear oh gorgeous your doing amazing sweetie ✨🥺 #long post #I ALSO HOPE THATS IN CHARACTER FOR NICK ✨🤧 bc this hc lives in my head now rent free it’s so cute ✨🤧 I LOVE THOSE SIBS!

[imyourliquor-youremypoison]

Play Me (Skam - Chris x OC) Part 2

Pairing : Chris x OC (name’s Elin)

Synopsis : Player 1 meets Player 2. The score is tight.

Word count : 3.8k

Part 1 <<< >>> Part 3

MASTERLIST

He did stop bothering her (sort of). At least, directly. His behavior still bothered her though, and Elin was ready – and more than willing – to break his legs next time she saw him go anywhere near Eva. That jerk had to go and fuck around with her friends – the next best option to her and to get on her nerves? - and now Eva had continuous fights with Jonas. All of that because Chris felt like kissing Eva. It was fucked up enough on his part to do this knowing she was in a relationship but now that Elin knew he was too, she felt like snapping his neck. She wasn't a violent person, but she was very imaginative and was dreaming about various ways to get back at him.

Also – and this was difficult for her to admit – she felt a little cheated because he had seemed so adamant to win her over. Being wrong didn't happen often to Elin (though it still occurred to her more frequently than to Sana) and whenever it did happen, it was always a huge shock to her. Had she misinterpreted Chris' intentions toward her? No, he did ask her out. It's not like she could have made it up, it was still on her phone. Truth be told, Elin was furious – like out of her mind furious – and not just because her pride was wounded, but because Chris used Eva to get to her, and she was also mad because he cheated on his girlfriend, who was completely oblivious to the situation and didn't deserve this. Just to mess with him, and to make things clear, Elin pulled out her phone and quickly typed a message.

To Ultimate Fuckboi™:

Wanna meet up tonight? ;)

He couldn't have answered any faster if he were waiting for her text.

From Ultimate Fuckboi™:

Your place or mine? (with the eggplant emoji, of course)

To Ultimate Fuckboi™:

NVW wrong person :)

When Elin was sure that her smiley face couldn't be interpreted in any other way than being sarcastic, she hit send. At the very least this brought an final point to Elin's internal monologue. Chris simply was a player. A misogynistic (how else could she call someone with so little respect for women?) asshole, who liked to collect girls like trophies and cared little about their feelings. Elin wasn't worried about her own feelings, but hell if she was going to let him play with Eva.

From Ultimate Fuckboi™:

That was a low blow.

To Ultimate Fuckboi™:

I play at your level.

When Chris read this last text, he saw red. Equally impressed and insulted, he locked his phone and tossed it on his bed. Who did she think she was? How could she resist him like that? Chris would have considered her liking girls if he hadn't seen her hook up with one of his friends. William said he had a similar problem with Noora, but Chris quickly dismissed the possibility of actually liking Elin – which was William's case, he literally couldn't shut up about Noora anymore. Elin wasn't likeable. She was bold, proud, uninhibited, aware of her beauty and competitive. She was hot and her confidence was a plus. She was desirable, that was the right word, not likeable. Chris couldn't remember when this tacit game of 'catch me if you can' began between the two of them, but it become increasingly obvious that they were playing a sick game. And the first one to give in to the other was going to lose. In Chris' humble opinion, she stood no chance.

The next time they talked face to face happened two weeks later – two weeks scattered with daily pickup lines Chris sent her, daily rejections on her part, and very active flirting going on on both sides, just not with each other. He could see her talk, smile, laugh, touch, flirt with other guys all day long. She did it shamelessly, not caring if the guy she targeted wasn't alone, she wasn't afraid to make the first move, or to be rejected. Elin was – and it took Chris everything he had in him to admit that – his female alter ego. The word was that she hooked up with most of the guys he had seen her with, and soon she had a reputation. Not a good one. Although Chris never really gave it a piece of mind, he realized how discriminatory it was that she was called bad names and he was praised, despite both of them doing the same thing.

One day, between two lame pickup lines, Chris sent her a Don't listen to them, because he overheard a group of girls call her bird names while she walked by, looking impressively calm and collected. They are just jealous, he texted her.

Not even Chris knew what he meant by that. Were they jealous of her success? Were they jealous of people like them who easily got their way with the opposite gender? Were they jealous because Elin was a thousand times more than they could ever be? She was prettier, smarter and since she was the one suffering being bullied in silent dignity, she was also overall worth more than those girls.

From Elin:

I don't need to be comforted.

A smile cracked his face in two, and Chris leaned against the wall behind him to distance himself from his group of friends and the conversation, and typed something back.

To Elin:

You wanna know what's beautiful? Read the first word again.

His own corniness made him cringe and smile at the same time, and although he had already sent his daily pickup line (today's was: I'm not a photographer, but I can picture me and you together) he still sent her this one, because he felt the unexplainable need to get her mind off of the nasty gossips surrounding her.

From Elin:

Exactly how many of those do you know? How long will I have to endure this?

To Elin:

Can't tell, I come up with them on the spot.

From Elin:

Game at its finest.

To Elin:

But it made you smile, just admit it already.

From Elin:

Maybe...

Chris wasn't going to push his luck and left it at that, with the warm feeling that he had just won a battle.

“Hey Chris,” William called his name and he had to look up from his phone. He hadn't even realized he was staring at their conversation. “What are you doing? It's time to go.” Apparently, the bell rang moments ago, and he was too caught up in his exchange with Elin to notice.

He didn't speak to her again after that (apart from the pickup lines, that is) until the day he accidentally ran into her – literally.

For a while now, the Penetrators were targeted by the Yazukas, who kept provoking them, and William feared that they were going to screw with their Russ bus. Fate had them meet at the park one Saturday afternoon, and what was bound to happen happened: a fist fight. Chris wasn't the first to throw a punch, but he was definitely the first to receive one since he stepped between one of the Yakuza guys and William to defend his friend. The punch he saw coming though, and he took it. What he didn't see was that he had a spectator.

Elin was walking in town, a bag of groceries hanging in the inside of her elbow, her hair swaying from side to side as she moved her head to some tune she was humming. She was in an inexplicable good mood today. No class, no homework this week, no nothing, not even Chris – had he finally given up or did he simply run out of pickup lines to send her? She was almost getting used to wake up to one of those by now. Not that she missed it.

She had almost reached her car when she heard shouts coming from somewhere on her left. Elin frowned and unlocked her car while looking over her shoulder, but she saw nothing. She put the groceries on the backseat and shut the door, locking the car and heading towards the source of the voices. Was someone getting attacked? Did she have something to defend herself? The pepper spray in her bag was always ready to use but she's rather just stay at a distance and call the police if something serious was going on.

The closer she got, the clearer it became that there was a fight and when Elin recognized one of the two groups, she felt the might urge to facepalm and turn around. But then, that stupid boy had to get punched, and Elin gasped, bringing both her hands over her mouth to stifle it. Fists flew and shouts and cheering ensued, Elin had no idea what to do or how much time had passed when she eventually heard police sirens, but it made them all freeze on the spot, fist raised.

Suddenly, they all separated, running in different directions and splitting up to make it more difficult for the cops to catch them all. Chris was the last one to run. He was the most hurt and he was still lying on the ground, groaning painfully when all the other had already disappeared. The girl pondered whether or not she should go and help him – at the risk of being involved with a fight if the police came here before they could leave – or just go. By the time she had made her choice and was about to step forward, Chris was already up and he ran. Straight toward her, though he couldn't see her because she was partly hidden behind a tree, and when he finally caught sight of her it was too late, their bodies collided and they both fell to the ground in a muffle thud and tumbled down the hill a couple meters.

“Elin?!” Chris shouted, looking bewildered.

“What the hell Chris?” She cursed, quickly jumping to her feet and landing him a hand to help him up. “Quick, quick, get up!”

“The cops are here, run!” He told her and for some reason, she not only obeyed but grabbed his forearm and began to pull him forward so he would follow her.

“No, my car's over there!” She told him when he began to run in another direction, pointing toward her Rover.

They ran and ran and no one said anything until they were both inside the car and Elin had drove off. Her heart hammered in her chest and she was breathless, but at least they made it. She didn't even know if it was overreacted or not, but Chris seemed to have calmed down now that he was sure not to end up at the police station.

“What happened?!” Elin asked in a shrill, demanding voice that perfectly conveyed the idea that she would not take silence for an answer. Chris winced because of his split lip, but answered anyway.

“The Yakuzas happened.”

“The Japanese mafia?” Elin frowned, her voice laced with doubt.

“What? No! The Russ crew from another school! They were looking for a fight and they were going to hit William so I stepped in. You're sitting next to a hero,” he said, smirking despite being beaten and bruised. He was going to have a black eye, Elin could already see it. “Ah shit, I can't smile, my entire face hurts!”

“Oh c'mon! I've never seen you smile anyway, all you do is smirk because you think it's charming,” she scoffed, turning left. “Where do you live?” She asked.

“It is charming!” He objected. “Don't you know? I thought you were hiding in my bushes, ready to throw rocks at my window.”

“I was asking to be polite,” she replied sarcastically, shooting him a fake smile. “You look like shit, Chris.”

“And yet I still look better than that guy you made out with the other day,” he told her, squinting his eyes at her.

“Peter?” She asked, purposely saying the wrong name.

“No Hektor!”

“Oh so you know all of them?” She laughed.

“Well, I have to know their names to blacklist them.” Chris shrugged, then looked outside. “I can't go home like this, my mom will flip!”

Elin remained silent for a few minutes, but there really was only one thing to do in this situation.

“It's alright, you can clean up at my place,” she sighed, already regretting her decision. It caught Chris' attention.

“Are we going to play doctor?” He smirked – again! - and raised an eyebrow, although he quickly stopped because it probably hurt like hell.

“Shut up!” She barked, although with a bit of fondness in her voice. “I can be your nurse as long as there's no stitching involved. I can't even sew a button, let alone a person!”

“What about yours parents flipping?” He asked carefully.

Elin licked her lips before reluctantly saying, “I- I don't live with my parents. They stayed in France. I have a studio not far from here.”

Chris didn't know what to answer, so he said “cool,” but then he wondered if it really was, or if she was lonely. They reached her place under five minutes and he followed her out of the car and up to the third floor, carrying her groceries for her – he insisted, even if she wasn't keen on accepting anything coming from him.

“I didn't know you're from France,” he said, to break this thickening and sickening silence.

“I was born in Norway, then we moved to France,” she explained concisely.

“Why did you come back?” He inquired.

“I heard there was an irredeemable heartthrob called Chris living here, so I moved right away, no second thought,” Elin replied, half playful half annoyed by his questions.

“Sounds legit,” he laughed, a little disappointed because he didn't get an answer. “I've never been called 'an irredeemable heartthrob', it almost sounds like a compliment.”

“Only you can take that as a compliment,” Elin said and took the grocery bag from him, before putting it away.

She removed her shoes and coat and he did the same, then she led him to her bathroom, where she stored her first aid-kit.

“You have an awesome car by the way,” he said. “Not awesome like William's, but still.”

“Do you have to diffuse the situation after you tell a compliment because you don't know how to be genuinely kind or are you just scared I might think you're nice?” She almost spat at him. “Normal people can say 'I like your car' to someone without dragging them right after.”

“Alright. I like your car. Period.”

“Thank you,” Elin said, smiling in satisfaction.

“Why do you have a car so big though?” He kept on asking questions, and honestly, if it meant he didn't try to hit on her while she sat him down on the edge of the bathtub and cleaned him up, then she might just answer.

“My dad said that a girl who lives alone should have a car so big she can run over a guy if needed,” she said point-blank.

Chris' eyes widened and he hissed when Elin touched his face with the alcohol drenched cotton to clean his wound. He had a gash running across his face, from the inner corer of his right eye to the left corner of his mouth. Maybe he would have a scar, who knew? It didn't look too deep but it still oozed blood. His left eye was already black, he cut his eyebrow and his lower lip was split. Actually Elin felt bad for him, he was in such a poor state that she felt guilty for being so severe with him all the time.

“I seriously cannot tell if you're messing with me right now,” he admitted, and it made her laugh genuinely.

“It's true, I'm not always sarcastic you know?” She felt the need to add. “You just manage to bring out my worst side!”

“Lucky me,” he said in a tone that she could only qualify as sad. “It's the first real conversation we have.”

“Don't ruin it, or I'll give you another black eye,” she warned him, brushing her hair back over her shoulder so it wasn't in her face.

“I must be a terrible person if you hate me this much,” he laughed bitterly, obviously not finding it funny at all. He sounded wounded - and not physically.

Elin let her arm drop to her lap and she fumbled with the cotton, putting it in a small ball. He noticed she was avoiding his eyes, but at least she wasn't laughing at him.

“I don't hate you, you profound cretin!” She told him, a faint smile giving away that she didn't mean the cretin part. “You're just behaving like a douche and you're unusually good at stepping on each and every last one of my nerves.”

“You can't curb talent,” he chuckled, and the girl went back to work. “I stopped talking to Eva, like you wanted.”

Elin nodded in response, acknowledging that he had done the right thing but not having anything to say to that.

“You could use your talent on someone else occasionally, it would give me a break,” Elin laughed in spite of who she was with.

He was a decent conversationalist when he didn't constantly try to play the asshole part.

“But you're the only person who answers me. Your comebacks are on point,” he said, closing his left eye. It looked like it was swelling a bit.

“Wait, I'll get you some ice to put on your eye.”

When she got up and headed to the kitchen to get ice, Chris took the opportunity to unzip his sweater and take a look at his ribs. His entire left side hurt like hell! His shirt was covered in blood at the collar from his nosebleed, but there was also a more worrying stain of blood on his ribs. Right as he lifted up his shirt and stood up to take a closer look in the mirror, Elin entered the bathroom, and she gasped at the sight of the long cut than ran over his ribs, and the forming bruise.

“Chris!” She said, handing his the bag of ice which he put on his eye. “Why didn't you show me this sooner?! Is this a knife cut?” She scolded him and made him sit down and strip.

“I knew you wanted my body,” he joked, ignoring the pain.

How much pain could he take before admitting that it hurt? Certainly his pride had limits. She helped him get his shirt over his head when it became obvious that he couldn't lift his left arm too high since it hurt too much and then made him sit down again. Elin pulled her stool closer and started to inspect this new found cut.

“Your pride is going to kill you one day,” she warned him in this motherly tone that girls used on reckless boys who got into fights.

“But I'm counting on you to patch me up and kiss my wounds,” he joked and hissed once again. Shit, that one stung!

“Will you stay still?!” She ordered and he complied, not willing to fight her today. Although she was pretty cute when she was mad.

“You're a bit bossy, aren't you? It's kinda hot,” he said, unable to repress his usual comments.

She glared at him from under her lashes and poked his side all the while making eye contact with him.

“That hurt!” He protested. “What did I say to deserve that? I told you you're hot!”

“Oh my bad, I must have heard wrong because I thought you called me bossy,” she snarled and put a gauze on the gash. He hissed again. “What now?” She asked. Surely she didn't accidentally hurt him, she was being cautious.

“Your hands are cold,” he simply said. “Hey, I've been meaning to ask you-”

“Shut up.”

“But I-”

“I said shut up, I need to clean the gash on your lip Chris, you need to stop talking so much,” Elin explained and he obeyed.

As soon as she was done with him, the talking resumed.

“How old are you? You don't look like... the other girls,” he said, trying not to say anything that might upset her.

“I'm from 97' like you,” Elin simply stated while putting away her first-aid kit. That too was an idea of her father, but she had never thought she would have to use it on a guy she couldn't stand. Or could she?”

“But why are you in first year then?”

“I'm not.” Elin frowned. “I'm in second year. I should be in your year, can you imagine that? But my Norwegian was a tad rusty so I thought it might be better to take it slow.”

“And you still hang out with Vilde and the others?” Chris wondered, both his eyebrows shooting so far up they were hidden behind his hair.

“Yes, they are nice. And since I came late I didn't have any Russ group and they invited me,” Elin explained and shrugged. “Don't you have friends younger than you?”

“Well, I thought I did until two seconds ago,” he chuckled. It was funny how he still tried to be flirty and charming despite having a bag of ice plastered on his face, hiding the entire left side of it.

“You and I? Friends?” Elin almost choked on thin air.

“What else would you call us?”

“I don't know, acquaintances?”

“Ouch!” Chris faked to be hurt by her words and she laughed at his dramatic gesture. “I cheered you up after those awful girls were mean to you!”

She was going to go for a classic but efficient “I didn't need it” or “you're just trying to get in my pants!” but she couldn't say it. He was being sort of alright at the moment, and he had been hurt so she simply couldn't bring herself to say anything mean right now. As long as he remained civilized so would she.

“And I appreciate it,” she conceded.

He thought she was about to add something but she didn't. Elin stayed quiet and just looked at him – it was not like he minded and he was doing the same. It was as though she hadn't really seen him before today, and even in the horrendous light of her bathroom, tattered, beaten, bruised and with this bag of ice, he still looked better than he had any other day, when he was smirking and winking at every girl who dared looking his way, and pretended to be an absolute jerk – that she suddenly realized, he was not. A comfortable silence settled in until Chris broke it.

“You're so beautiful you made me forget my pickup line,” he said, the ludicrous sentence making both of them grin like idiots, and there Elin thought he had forgotten.

#skam #christoffer schistad #penetrator chris #chris #chris schistad #chris schistad oneshot #chris schistad imagine #chris imagine #skam oneshot #skam imagine #skam fanfic #skam fanfiction #fanfiction #herman tommeraas #play me #fight #yakuza #penetrators #penetrator chris oneshot